Explorers of Knowledge
by Octagoon
Summary: An Axew and a Bunnelby that have always wanted to become explorers. A Vulpix with a strong sense of justice. A Sandslash that lost an old friend. They, among the other Pokémon in Greenward Guild, try to make the region of Serta a more safe and friendly place. However, with grave threats rising, it will ultimately be up to them to protect the world. Are they up to the task?


**Explorers of Knowledge**  
 **Chapter 1**

Citrus Forest. Once known for being a home to docile, friendly Pokémon. These days, almost every Pokémon that lives there is territorial or hostile. Nobody truly knows how the changes occured. Citrus Forest wasn't the only affected place. Frost Mountain, Flower Field, Remo River and a lot of other locations fell victim as well.

To research how exactly this could have happened, exploration teams started forming around the region of Serta. These teams were supposed to not only find the cause of the sudden outbreak of hostile Pokémon, but they also received the task of helping Pokémon that suffered because of this. A second objective for the teams was to apprehend super-bad Pokémon, more commonly known as outlaws. Naturally, they were paid for their achievements, mostly by the client or the local sheriff.

However, some teams became greedy. They lost sight of what they truly once fought for, what they became an exploration team for, and took on jobs only to reel more cash in. A handful of powerful explorers realized that the corruption of the exploration teams was starting, and knew that it was the time to act. This is how the Explorer Union was created.

The Explorer Union created laws for exploration teams. The first law was that only a team with an exploration badge could be considered a true exploration team. To get this badge, the Pokémon must have graduated from an explorer guild, certifying themselves as true explorers. This wasn't easy. Only the ones that had the determination and skill were able to pull it off.

Of course, at first there weren't any guilds. That quickly changed. The first Pokémon to create a guild was a Scizor named Steve. Explorers revered him, outlaws feared him. His guild was constructed in the middle of Greenward Town, which was in turn not very far away from Citrus Forest. These days, Greenward Town doesn't exist anymore, and is replaced by Greenward City, a place where many exploration teams and aspiring explorers gather. The place where the most famous guild of all is located.

Greenward Guild attracted a lot of aspiring explorers, even some that didn't live in Greenward City themselves. The problem with the latter was for them to actually reach the place. It was almost certain that they had to traverse wild lands, where hostile Pokémon ran around. Because of this, a lot of aspiring explorers simply gave up their dream.

But not all of them did. This is the story of a young Pokémon whose desire to become an exploration team member burned so hot that he would even cross the dangerous Citrus Forest to become one.

* * *

Two young Pokémon stood side by side at the entrance of Citrus Forest. One had a gray-green-ish color. Two tusks stuck out from the sides of his mouth. He could be recognized as the Dragon-type Axew.

The second Pokémon had about the same height as his friend, so he wasn't tall. He was gray and brown, and had two large, powerful ears. He was known as the Normal-type Bunnelby.

The duo stood in silence next to each other, staring at the trees that loomed over them. Both were aspiring explorers, and both knew that they would have to traverse the forest to get to the famous Greenward Guild.

"T-this is it, right, Nathan?" the Bunnelby finally spoke up, breaking the silence between the two.

Nathan, the Axew, nodded in response at his friend's words. "We...should go, Timmy," he said. The faster they could take off, the better for Nathan. After all, Timmy's parents agreed to him becoming an explorer. Nathan's mother didn't, so he had to sneak away from home.

"Hey," Timmy nudged Nathan with his ear, "It's going to be alright, okay? This is what we both wanted. I'm sure your mom wants to see you happy too."

Nathan honestly wasn't sure, but he managed to put up a brave smile. "Sure she does. Are you ready, Timmy?"

The Bunnelby grinned widely. "Never better."

Nathan smiled at his childhood friend. An Axew and a Bunnelby may not have been the most common combination of friends, but Timmy always managed to get a smile on Nathan's face, even when the latter was down. "Let's go then. And thanks."

"No problem," the sole response was.

* * *

Timmy looked at his map. "Shouldn't we be almost there by now? The sun is already starting to set."

"I know, Timmy," Nathan sighed, "And yes, we should almost be there."

"Good, because I'm starting to get a little tired," the Bunnelby yawned.

"You're going to have to go through way harsher places once we apprentice at the guild, you know?" Nathan teased.

"Shut up," Timmy answered, playfully smacking Nathan's arm.

The duo didn't come across much resistance while traveling through the woods. There was a small flock of Taillow that attacked them, a few Chikorita, two Venonat and a sole Tranquill. They had stocked up on Oran Berries, so that they could regain some energy after coming out of battle. None of the feral Pokémon proved to be a challenge, except for the flock, and that was because Nathan and Timmy were outnumbered. They managed to overpower their opponents nonetheless.

"The other reason I'm glad that we're almost through," Timmy declared, "is because we're almost out of Oran Berries. I don't know about you, but I don't want to faint in here."

Nathan shuddered. "True. I don't want to end up as food for the local Pokémon."

"Oh, we're not interested in you as food," a voice suddenly said, making both Nathan and Timmy jump in surprise, "We just want your cash." Right in front of them, on a rock, sat a Poochyena. Nathan could have sworn that the Dark-type hadn't been there ten seconds before.

"Our m-money?" Timmy stuttered.

"That's right," the Poochyena grinned. Its voice was calm and feminine, leading Nathan to believe it was a girl. However, it was also cold as steel, as if she wouldn't mind ripping out their throats if they didn't give her what she wanted, right when she wanted it. "Citrus Forest is our pack's domain. Either you pay toll, or you turn back. You can choose."

"We don't have any money," Nathan said, "We're just on our way to Greenward City. Please let us pass."

"Oh dear." She shook her head. "Looks like we've got some difficult customers today." She looked skywards and howled loudly.

Nathan realized too late that it wasn't a howl to intimidate them. It was a sign for something...or someone. Before he could tell Timmy that they had to run, black shadows came bursting through the bushes. Five more Poochyena surrounded the two young Pokémon.

"I'll ask again," the female Poochyena said calmly, "Pay or turn back."

Timmy was paralyzed with fear. These creatures were nothing like the flock of Taillow. These were organized, and they looked tougher as well. "W-what can we do, Nathan?" he whispered.

"We have to keep going," Nathan whispered back, "I'll distract them, you run away quickly."

"Hey, what are you whispering about?" one of the Poochyena called out, approaching the duo, "No whisperi-"

His sentence was cut short as a Dual Chop hit it on its face, and then in its stomach. The Poochyena collapsed. "Now!" Nathan yelled. Timmy didn't waste any time, and hopped away as quickly as he could. He hadn't learned the move Dig, so he couldn't use that to get away.

Nathan was just about to run after him, when a familiar Poochyena jumped in front of him, and blocked his path. "Nice diversion," she hissed, before calling out to the other Poochyena. "What are you waiting for? Go after that Bunnelby, now!" Nathan realized she was the leader, as the other Poochyena instantly obeyed her, except for the one that fainted after taking Nathan's Dual Chop.

"So, now it's just the two of us," Nathan simply said.

"I'm not afraid of you, just because you're a Dragon-type," she let him know, "Oh, and I'm not alone." She howled loudly again.

Nathan realized that even more Poochyena would come if he didn't act quickly. He had two choices. Either knock out the Poochyena in front of him, or run away. The latter didn't seem to be a good idea, as the Poochyena probably knew the forest better than him, and would be able to traverse it better. The former was the most viable option, albeit still a bad one.

He followed the former. The Dragon-type aimed for the Poochyena's head with his Dual Chop, but she anticipated this. As she swiftly dodged his attack, Nathan realized too late that she was more powerful than her underlings.

"Bad choice," she snarled. She jumped him and bit his right arm with her Bite attack.

Nathan screeched in pain and tried to shake the Poochyena off, but she didn't give way. Only when the first blow made contact with her stomach, she had to gasp. Quickly, Nathan delivered the second blow of his Dual Chop with his right hand, right between her eyes. The Poochyena stumbled back, but was far from defeated.

When she looked up, Nathan saw hatred in her eyes. Pure, unbridled hatred. "Did you really think a weak attack like that would beat me? You just destroyed your own hope to ever walk out of here alive."

As if that was what they were waiting for, half a dozen of Poochyena came out of the bushes behind her. Nathan was outnumbered in a one-versus-seven battle.

"Scared?" the female Poochyena asked, probably after seeing the expression on Nathan's face, "Can't blame you. I would be scared too." She turned to her underlings. "Destroy him."

The Poochyena herd barked and howled loudly as they ran at Nathan. He prepared himself for impact, for a battle he couldn't possibly win, no matter how hard he'd fight.

The impact never came. Nathan couldn't believe his eyes when a wall of fire suddenly appeared in front of him. He heard the yelping of the unfortunate Poochyena that made contact with it. He heard the angry roars of their leader.

"Are you okay?" a soft and tender voice asked behind him. Nathan turned around, to see two Pokémon looking at him.

The first Pokémon was somewhat taller than Nathan. It was yellow and brown, with sharp spikes protruding from its back. Nathan gulped at the sight of its two sharp claws. This Pokémon was a Sandslash, a Ground-type.

However, the Pokémon that had used the Fire Spin stood next to the Sandslash. It was quadruped, and had a red-and-brown fur. She had no less than six separate red tails. Her two big, round eyes stared at Nathan. He recognized it as a Vulpix, a Fire-type.

"I think it's either in shock or dumbstruck," the Sandslash shrugged, "That, or it can't talk."

The Vulpix turned its gaze at the Sandslash. "Max, I'll stay here and take care of it. Can you handle those Poochyena on your own?"

The Sandslash, Max, stared at her. "Seriously, Elissa? You know I've had worse than them." And without another word, he dug a hole into the ground, disappearing from view.

The Vulpix, Elissa, turned her attention back to Nathan. "So... Can you speak?"

Nathan nodded. "Your friend... Will he be alright?"

Elissa grinned. "You'd be better off wondering whether those Poochyena will be alright. Max is the strongest of all Greenward Guild's apprentices."

Nathan's jaw dropped upon hearing this. He was just about to reply, when the flames died out, and the battle between Max and the Poochyena became visible.

It was truly an inspirational sight. With every Slash Max used, a Poochyena was sent flying. The Dark-types sunk their teeth everywhere in his body, but Max didn't flinch.

Nathan also noticed that one of the Poochyena wasn't participating in the battle. The leader looked briefly at the battle that raged on in front of her, before turning around. Nathan realized that she wanted to run away, and abandon her underlings.

Elissa followed his gaze, and noticed it as well. "Stay here," she told Nathan, "I'll take care of it." And then she was gone in a flash of red. Nathan stood in awe. Even for a Quick Attack, the speed was incredible.

In no less than seconds, she cut off the Poochyena's path. Nathan saw that the Dark-type prepared to launch herself at Elissa, but she didn't get the chance. Elissa used Fire Spin again, and a column of fire appeared around the Poochyena, trapping her.

Almost at the same time, the last of the underlings was sent flying against a tree by a Slash attack from Max, and collapsed. "Told you it wasn't a problem," the Sandslash said. He wasn't even panting.

"And I captured their second-in-command," Elissa smiled, before turning to the pillar of fire, "Rosetta the Poochyena, you are under arrest for theft and kidnapping, among other crimes."

A loud roar could be heard from inside the column. Nathan understood that the Poochyena's name was Rosetta, and that she probably was a wanted outlaw.

"Uh... Excuse me!" the Axew called out.

The heads of both Elissa and Max turned to him. "What's wrong, Axew?" Max asked.

"T-the name's Nathan!" he stammered, "Those Pokémon you just defeated...were they outlaws?"

Elissa shook her head. "Rosetta, yes. The others are merely petty members from her pack. Although, we will have to arrest them as well. If I may ask, Nathan, what were you doing all alone in Citrus Forest?"

"I was on my way to Greenward Guild to apprentice there," he revealed, surprising Elissa and Max, "And I wasn't alone! A childhood friend of mine... A Bunnelby, Timmy. He was with me, but ran away after the Poochyena showed up! Four of them went after him!"

"You weren't alone?" Elissa asked, "That changes things." She turned her attention to the Sandslash. "Max, I want you to take the Poochyena to the guild on your own. Can you do that?"

"Of course I can," Max nodded, "I take it you two are going to look for that Bunnelby in the meantime?"

Elissa looked at Nathan. "Do you want to come as well?"

Nathan nodded vigorously. "I can't leave Timmy alone like this! Not when a bunch of Poochyena are still running around!"

"You've got bravado, kiddo," Max said, "I like that. Here." He tossed an Oran Berry at Nathan, which the latter clumsily caught. "Make sure you find your friend. I'll come with reinforcements as soon as possible."

Elissa nodded in response, before gesturing at Nathan to eat the Oran Berry. "We have to get going as soon as possible. Your friend may still be in grave danger."

"But... You've arrested the leader of the pack. It can't b-" He stopped when he realized something that Elissa said before.

 _"I captured their second-in-command!"_

"T-that Poochyena... She wasn't their leader, was she?"

Elissa shook her head. "Nope. She was the second-in-command, that's true. But the true leader of the pack and the band of thieves... Well, let's hope we won't meet him. Because that would be very unpleasant."

Nathan realized that if Elissa was afraid to face him, that Pokémon would be out of his league. He gulped down the Oran Berry, seeing as Elissa was waiting impatiently for him.

"You ate it. Good. Now let's go."

* * *

"You got really lucky that we were in the area, you know?"

Nathan looked at the Fire-type that was walking next to him. Darkness was already starting to set in, and they still hadn't found Timmy.

"I don't want to think about what they would have done to you," Elissa continued, "Especially Rosetta is a hardened criminal. She wouldn't hesitate to hurt you badly. I'm talking really, really badly."

Nathan wished she would stop talking. He couldn't concentrate like this.

Suddenly, the Vulpix's eyes widened. "Shhh!"

"I'm not even saying anything!" Nathan whispered.

"No, seriously, look!" Elissa pointed with her front paw at a campfire in the middle of the forest. "I bet the rest of the Poochyena pack is there!" She sneaked closer.

"What about Timmy?" Nathan asked softly, following her.

She simply responded by gesturing at the figures around the campfire.

There were even more Poochyena than he had expected. At least twenty of them were walking around. And close to the campfire... Timmy sat there, flanked by two Poochyena that growled at him. Nathan had to restrain jumping up and attacking the two Dark-types to save his friend. He would have probably done that too, if a figure didn't rose from the shadows right then.

It looked like the smaller Poochyena, except that this Pokémon was taller, with more white streaks in its fur. It was a Mightyena, the evolved form of Poochyena.

"Oh no," Elissa muttered, "Brandon himself. This isn't good." She turned to Nathan. "We have to get out of here and bring help. We can't take him on our own."

"But Timmy..." Nathan started.

"This Pokémon is Rosetta's father," Elissa cut him off, "He taught her everything she knows. Everything she can do, he can do better! One-on-one would be possible, maybe, but with a herd of twenty or more Poochyena surrounding him? No. Just no."

"Rosetta still hasn't returned," they suddenly heard the Mightyena bark, "You, you and you," he pointed at three Poochyena, "Go look for her." The three Poochyena nodded vigorously and took off. "That girl better didn't let herself get captured," he snarled. The sounds sent chills up Nathan's spine.

"We have to go now," Elissa insisted.

"Wait, let me just give him a sign..." Nathan responded.

"And what if one of them notices it?" she replied, "What then?"

"I have to, okay?" Nathan realized too late that he spoke too loud.

"You can come out now, whoever's hiding there," the Mightyena growled.

"Run," Elissa whispered. Just as they were about to make a run for it, half a dozen of Poochyena appeared behind them. Before either Elissa or Nathan were able to attack the Dark-types, a shadow fell over them. They turned around, only to see the Mightyena towering over them.

"Uninvited guests?" the Mightyena mused, "You wouldn't know anything about the disappearance of my daughter, would you? Or did you come for your friend, the Bunnelby?"

"Brandon, sir," one of the Poochyena called out, "This Axew was with that Bunnelby. Lady Rosetta stayed behind with it."

"And you didn't stay to make sure she would be fine," Brandon replied with an emotionless look on his face.

A sweat drop rolled down the Poochyena's cheek. "S-sir, she called up on reinforcements! She ordered us to chase after the Bunnelby!"

"And," he continued, "did those other Poochyena she called upon return?"

The Poochyena that was talking went pale. "N-no..." he stammered.

A snarl could be heard from deep inside the Mightyena's throat. "That's unfortunate." He turned his attention back to Nathan and Elissa. "I suppose you two don't know what happened?"

Nathan didn't have the courage to open his mouth, but Elissa couldn't be restrained. "She's where she belongs. Just like where you will be soon as well."

Brandon laughed. "You think you could best me, while I have my full herd around me?" He paused for a while, then looked at the Poochyena that was talking before. "Well, my nearly full herd," he snarled at it. The Poochyena cringed. "Anyway, it would be rude for me to not treat my guests well. Please come join us at the campfire."

Elissa charged at him, but he simply swatted her aside. "I'm not going to ask twice, little Pokémon."

Nathan raised his arms in defeat, and followed the Poochyena back to the campfire. Elissa walked behind him, albeit hesitantly. Nathan sat down in silence next to Timmy.

The Bunnelby's eyes were red, presumably from crying. "I'm so glad you're here, Nathan... I don't know what I would have done here should I have been left alone..."

"What happened to you?" Nathan asked.

"I ran away, but they caught up to me... I was no match..." he said sadly.

Nathan nodded in response. Meanwhile, Elissa was still glaring daggers at every Poochyena that even dared to sneak a peek at her.

"Who's your friend?" Timmy whispered.

"That's Elissa," Nathan answered, "She's apparently an apprentice at Greenward Guild."

"Sadly, we won't reach that place now, will we?" Timmy said, his sad tone still clearly hearable.

"Hey, don't be like that," Nathan tried to cheer him up, "Max will be here soon with help to save us."

"Who's Max?"

Before Nathan could respond, Elissa walked up to the two males. "Be ready to fight."

"E-excuse me?" the Bunnelby blurted out.

"If you would be so kind to shut your mouths for a moment, I would like to make an announcement," Brandon interrupted, glaring back at Elissa, "I heard from sources that a Vulpix apprentices at Greenward Guild. I'm guessing it's this Vulpix right here. So what we're going to do is propose a trade. Her for Rosetta."

"Ha! As if the other guild members would ever do that!" Elissa blurted out.

"If they don't, then the future doesn't look bright for you," Brandon snarled, "And it doesn't look good for you two either," he gestured at Nathan and Timmy, "It's your fault my daughter got arrested."

"She attacked us!" Nathan protested.

"Of course she did," Brandon nodded, "And you resisted, which you shouldn't have done. I fear that the two of you will serve as a meal for us later." He licked his lips. "I've never tasted a Dragon-type before. I wonder what it's like."

Timmy just sat there, frozen in fear, but Nathan jumped up. He was paralyzed before, but upon hearing this, all his fear faded for some reason. "Not if we defeat you first!"

Brandon grinned. "Why don't you try doing that, little Axew?"

Elissa went to stand in front of Nathan, facing the Mightyena. "Pick on someone of your own caliber," she snapped at him.

"Going to let a girl fight in your place?" Brandon mused, "How interesting."

"I'm not going to fight you myself," she let Brandon know.

"Oh? Then who is going to fight me? The little Bunnelby over there, maybe?" He laughed at the idea of Timmy battling him.

"Nope. You see, your stupid blabbering gave us enough time to prepare."

"Is that so? And what exactly did you prepare with that Axew and Bunnelby?" he asked.

"That's where you're wrong. With us, I mean my collegues."

And as she spoke those words, all hell broke loose.

Three Poochyena were launched in the air as something -no, someone- popped out of the ground underneath. Max revealed himself, and began slashing at the Poochyena mercilessy.

Meanwhile, out of the trees, sharp leaves were fired at the Poochyena. Howling loudly, they tried to scatter and run away, but Elissa fired a Fire Spin, trapping all of them behind a wall of fire.

"You... What... How...?" Brandon stammered, seeing his herd fall one by one.

"Simple. Max gave me the signal he was at position. A flash in the darkness with his claws," Elissa told him.

"Graaah!" Brandon launched himself at the smaller Fire-type, but suddenly a yellow-colored net was thrown at him from above. No, it wasn't a net. It was a web. The Mightyena yelped as electricity ran over his body.

A huge six-legged Pokémon climbed down from the tree. Thanks to the campfire, Nathan could see that its body was yellow, with blue and purple streaks here and there. The Pokémon had four smaller eyes in between its two regular eyes. It was a Galvantula, a dual Bug/Electric-type.

"Thank you, Tess," Elissa said simply.

"It's my pleasure," the Galvantula responded in a surprisingly feminine voice.

"Let me go!" Brandon squirmed in the webs, "I swear, I'll rip your throats out! I'll eat all of you raw, for breakfast!"

Tess looked down on him contemptuously. "Oh, hush, you." She fired a weird, flashing beam of light that could be recognized as a Signal Beam at the Mightyena. When the move made contact, Brandon fainted due to the impact of the super effective attack. "I taste horrible anyway."

Nathan and Timmy looked at the Galvantula in awe. Even though Bug-types were a good match against Dark-types, the way she defeated the Mightyena was still impressive.

"These are the two new apprentices?" Tess asked.

Elissa nodded. "This is Nathan the Axew, and that's Timmy the Bunnelby," she introduced them.

The Galvantula smiled. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Uh, likewise," Nathan responded, "But shouldn't we help your other friends?"

Tess's smile grew even bigger. "Take a look at the Poochyena."

Nathan obeyed and turned around. What he saw was impressive. Almost all of the Poochyena were knocked out already. A single one managed to almost get away, but a shadow jumped out of a tree, blocked the Dark-type's path, and launched it back with a blow with...was that a leaf on its head?

Meanwhile, Max knocked out the last two Poochyena that had been attacking him. The Pokémon that threw the Poochyena back stepped in the light of the campfire. Its color was a mixture of light and dark brown. It had a very pointy nose. But the most striking characteristic was the leaf on its head. The Pokémon was a Nuzleaf, a Grass/Dark-type. Another Nuzleaf climbed out of another tree close by.

"Woo!" the approaching Nuzleaf said, "That was totally awesome!"

"You bet, bro!" the other one replied, high fiving his brother, "We did great!"

Elissa smiled. "Those two are Gary and Harry, the Nuzleaf twins. Just like Max, Tess and me, they are apprentices at the guild."

"Yup, that's us!" one of them yelled, suddenly popping up next to Elissa, "And who do we have here?"

"Could they be our two new aspiring apprentices?" the other one mused.

"Y-yes!" Nathan said, "I'm Nathan, and this is Timmy! We were on our way to Greenward Guild, until we were ambushed by them!"

"Is that so," a calm voice said from above. Nathan looked up to see a huge bird in the sky. How he failed to notice the Pokémon before, eluded him. When it landed, Nathan could clearly see that the bird had a combination of light and dark brown colors. It had huge wings. A long red-and-yellow crest was to be seen on the bird's forehead. Nathan recognized the species as a Pidgeot.

"Hello, Heather," Max greeted the newcomer. Even the Nuzleaf twins seemed to calm down after the Pidgeot appeared.

"Hello, Maximillion," Heather greeted back, before turning to Nathan and Timmy, "You are probably wondering who I am. My name is Heather, and I'm the second-in-command in Greenward Guild. But before we get to your apprenticeship, let's take these wrongdoers to the sheriff, shall we?"

* * *

 **That was chapter one, everyone! A few notes after reading:**

 **\- Abilities aren't a thing in this fanfic. Of course, some abilities, like Flash Fire or Poison Point, would be usable, but a great amount of others, like Gluttony or Gale Wings, would either be unusable or too difficult to pull off, leaving certain Pokémon with no abilities. I decided to make it even for all Pokémon, and just delete abilities alltogether.**

 **\- This story won't be about a human turned into a Pokémon, like most Mystery Dungeon-based stories.**

 **I think I got everything. Thank you for taking the time to read this story, and have a nice day!**


End file.
